Flowering Pride
by Arthfilth
Summary: There was once a pretty Tark, and a ferocious Uruk-Hai. Under strange circumstances, they end up gravitating towards each other more and more until they finally achieve a sort of... connection. A weird one at that, but still a connection. Their path is full of blood, and their story is forged through the violence that characterizes orcs. Will they ever find happiness?
1. Edarna, the farm girl

Edarna.

That was my name. A beautiful daughter of a humble man, living in a small, simple village in Gondor, although the said village was bordering Mordor. It was a small village, there, with men and women merely going about their business happily in the sunlight, little boys running around and playing innocent games, sometimes mimicking sword fights. Such was life in Roseband, in my village.

The small town was charming, to say the least. While it was not a large village, there were many kind inhabitants there who sometimes made life easier. There were large wooden gates at the village's entrances, which were always closed at night, but remained open otherwise, and a sort of wooden spike wall around it that was supposed to protect us. I didn't really know if it really would help if any army was marching onto them, but if bands of bandits came around, she thought they would be able to handle them. Each house had a small farm, and most people were farmers, although some were trading animals and meat for certain fruits or vegetables, and some would give their products to those who needed it. Life was fairly easy, and heavenly, at times, due to just how calm it was. Sometimes, it was a bit boring, though. There were also woods not even a mile away from the village. They were quite large but harmless in my eyes, which was why I went there a lot.

I often had to help my father at the farm, but other times, when I had free time on my hands, I'd simply walk around and go out of the village, despite my father's warnings. He always said that I should look out for orcs, or foul beasts. Speaking of my father, who was a fair man, he was growing a little old now. To be truthful, I didn't have anyone besides him as family, and I was told my mother died from some sort of sickness not long after my birth. My father had refused to marry again, apparently. Most of the time, though, I didn't really listen to what he would say about the dangers of the forest, for often I was too enamored by the wilds and by what was all around to even think about dangerous animals or even orcs. The possibilities of getting attacked were so low anyway, and besides, I went out often and never was injured at all.

Most of the time, I could be found daydreaming while laying down in a patch of grass, smiling at whatever thoughts crossed my head. These thoughts would always be happy, or at least I'd try to orient them towards that philosophy, for at the time, I was a fair, lovely, and happy woman, or so it seemed, who has just turned 19. My hair was brown, and made into a long braid from the side, stopping just at my chest. I always wore a sort of brown robe, for even if it was at first white, the work in the farm and the many times I went outside would quickly change that. My eyes were also brown, but I was told there was general happiness in my eyes that expressed positivity. In fact, I was known to always be positive, even in very negative situations. There wasn't actually a time my father, or anyone else for that matter, could remember me not being cheerful.

And today, I was going to head out to the forest again. It might've been about the twentieth time I was going there, or maybe the fiftieth, but I hadn't counted, and I couldn't remember. I usually to relax, sometimes, just to try to tend to the deep loneliness I still felt inside despite my generally joyful behavior. Having grown up without a mother, and having been kept away from the boys and girls of my age just to help out my father all day had been a little straining and didn't leave much room for me to make a lot of friends.

Often, though, I was only just bored by the lack of things to do, and then, I'd prefer to head out into the woods to try to make time pass faster.

When I woke up quite early —The sun was only just starting to go up,— I jumped out of the bed a little energetically. I'd slept early just the day before, so, I woke up quite early today, and in a good mood, filled with energy from the good sleep I'd received.

There was bread to eat for breakfast. Not like there was anything else anytime, to be fair, but I wouldn't complain. Actually, we almost ate bread every day, though sometimes we mixed it up with a bit of meat and with vegetables, or sometimes fruits. I ate quickly, excited for the day to start for whatever reason.

I then went out of her house, yawning. It doesn't seem like anyone is awake yet… I have a lot of time before having to do anything, I thought. I wanted to go to the forest again. I could easily be back at noon at least, even though my father often wanted her to make a meal at late hours since he was a hard worker. I normally never stayed in the forest for more than four hours, and that was a lot for me to stay in. Most of the time, two hours were all I needed to get comfortable.

I looked to the side, towards the paved road, and started making my way to the east. That was where the woods would be found, and it wasn't hard to get there. I simply had to follow the road closely. On my way out of the village, I saw another farmer.

Oh. Ngollîd. I smiled upon seeing him and blushed lightly. I liked him, even though I knew we wouldn't fit together. He just looked so good… And sometimes he was so kind… But, he didn't really know me too much. "H-Hi," I said, making an attempt at engaging a conversation anyway. I think it was obvious I was a little forcing the contact, but still... He turned to me with a smile. The same smile he gives everyone he doesn't know... "Hello there. Where are you going so early?"

I responded, "I-I'm simply going out in the woods again…"  
_How is he not noticing my blush…_

"Oh, alright then. I have work to do, so this does not bother me too much." He went back to his farm work, and I very quickly resumed her path to the forest. I wanted to get away from him and this… embarrassing attempt at a conversation as quickly as possible.

After 10, or 20 minutes, I was already into the forest, and I was already laying down, my back against a tree. I took a breath and savored the nature around me. It was all so calm… Calm enough for me to relax...

Only, two hours later, the sound of bushes moving would break the silence.

I didn't pay attention immediately. Why would I? It might be any normal sort of animal, after all. What was the problem there? I didn't think anything of this and still hummed a tune calmly while I had a slight smile on my face.

When a large blue-ish skinned shadow crossed over, however, I was forced to look, I was afraid; was it one of those fearsome Uruk-Hais I had been warned about by my father? I hoped not. These beasts would skin me alive without any hesitation, from what I'd heard, and they were all ugly, evil, and… and... Or maybe it was a product of my imagination? However, the fact the shadow was still approaching no matter how many times I blinked made me admit that it had to be true. Then, maybe, just maybe my father had been right this time. I still somewhat hoped it was a bad prank, but the chances were highly unlikely by now. I observed the figure, not daring to move, for I still had a good bit of common sense. Movement got the eye's attention, and in this case, I really did not want to get any sort of attention from the beast before me.

However, it was unnaturally bright blue eyes that crossed my way, and that pierced right through my eyes. I gasped and knowing I was spotted, got up, wanting to run away immediately.

The orc was faster though.

He'd been running towards me already, and even as I was trying to run, I tripped in my robe and fell down. I was able to catch myself with my hands, bruising them as I did so, however, when I tried getting up, a hand was put to the back of my robe and pulled me up. I was forcefully flipped over to look at the beast I'd seen earlier.

"Ha! Found you, damn Tark!" The Uruk said (with what would be qualified as a British accent, yet a rough voice,) his eyes staring straight into mine.  
"W-W-What do you want of me?" I asked, already starting to shake in fear. I couldn't look away from his eyes. It looked like those damn eyes were actually staring into the deepest parts of me, maybe even the parts of me I didn't know about.

While I expected a blow, it was only the orc's voice that snapped back at me.  
"First, you'll open your eyes, white-skinned bitch, and look at me."

The orc had a strong grip, and a strong arm, I noticed, along with just a generally strong and tall body. There was no possible resistance against that. He had two axes on the ground next to him, and he had an imposing armor that exposed his torso, but greatly protected his arms and his legs. He was bald, but wore ear piercings, and had harsh, pointy teeth. His traits weren't as ugly as I'd expected, though. Of orcs, I expected nothing but filthy, smelly, ugly bastards. While for the first two, the orc standing before me clearly was, he wasn't so much of an ugly bastard. He had black tattoos on his body. My eyes were filled with fear, and so I dared not speak.

_I-Is that what orcs really look like? They're almost…_ I didn't find my words, even in my thoughts, to express what I was feeling. It was… new… similar to how I felt for N-

"Tell me your damn name!" He exclaimed, still looking at me in the eyes, which brought me back out of my thoughts. There was something in those damn eyes that made me obey again. Maybe it was that dominative aura again. It looked like he could sense the fear dripping off of me.

Compelled to answer, my little nervous voice tried to answer. "E-Edarna… I'm called Edarna, milord…" What word did I have to call… him? He was so much taller and so much stronger than I was, and I was at his complete mercy.

However, the orc started laughing right in my face. He grabbed me by the throat, and slammed me against a tree, making me let out a sound of pain escape my lips. He wasn't gentle at all. Luckily, he hadn't broken anything. It just hurt a great lot.

"It'll be captain for ya, silly Tark!"  
He seemed a little mad but mostly amused.

_Tark? He said it again… Is that how he calls humans? Or just Gondorians?_ The urgency to respond was more important to me than my questions though. Even though I was being choked, I had to speak.

"Y-Yes, c-captain…" The words made their way out of my throat, though with difficulty. I could still only look at him straight in the eyes, without being given the possibility to look away. It felt like I was locked in place, like my eyes were literally locked into his, as I tried to breathe as best as I could. There was some part of me that was enj-

"Hmmm… What to do with ya… You're my first Tark… You're a female Tark…" It looked like he was a little disappointed to find a "weaker" Tark. Maybe he thought there was no fun in that. There was a sliver of hope for that in my mind. Maybe, in that case, he'd just drop me right there and go away. Although, what if he decided to torture me right here and right now? She heard those filthy creatures were very good at doing just that. I wouldn't be able to stop him from doing all sorts of things to me. Which would-

"Bah, I'm just gonna have fun when I lead my Uruks down your village! You're lucky to live just a little longer." As he said that, he threw me down, "But here's a little tip for ya: don't run away from this cursed village." He laughed a little. "If ya run away from the village, my guys are gonna catch ya. And they won't be as kind to a Tark bitch as I was," and he burst out into laughter. I didn't cry, however, and was rather happy of the fact she was let go alive, even though I feared for… The night? For tomorrow? When were they gonna attack? I was too afraid to run away after what he said though. I really shouldn't test my luck by trying to run away.

No. I would have to warn the village, tell them to get ready, to take arms. That was the least I could do… Maybe we couldn't actually run away, but there was still a chance we could fend off the Uruks.

Maybe that was naive, wishful thinking though. Who could even use a spear in a village? The guards could, maybe, but again, they were self-trained and weren't really that good at their job. Against an imposing orc such as… this orc captain, they wouldn't be able to do much.

Maybe there truly was no escape. The thought frightened me deeply, but I had to be realistic. Unless the orc was bluffing, maybe we really were done for.

The orc captain was still looking down at me with a grin. A malicious, evil grin. Again, he was taking immense pleasure in putting fear into me. "Go! Run back to your shitty village, before I do something else to you, little cunt!"

And I got up without any hesitation and ran away as the captain laughed behind me.


	2. Astaroth, the prideful Uruk

"Astaroth!" I heard my name from the entrance of the camp. I turned my head to face the Uruk who had just talked to me; Ofdaukh. He was only a little pissy shit with lot's o' brains, and with great talents of assassination, which was the only thing that allowed him to get as far into the orc hierarchy as he did.

"What is it, maggot?!" I said, looking prideful, and actually in a quite good mood from what I had just done to the damn Tark bitch.

"You fuckin' dumb shit, we were wondering where the fuck you were!" Ofdaukh had been running towards me and was quickly there. Of course, he was nothing compared to how tall I was, and he didn't seem too dangerous, save for his spears and maybe, just maybe the fur of slain creatures he'd wear like trophies. To me, he seemed pretty weak, but to some other Uruks, he still gave off respect.

"I was having fun, Ofdaukh!"  
"Fun?! While we were in the middle of preparations, and while we needed our fuckin' leader? What kind of fun is worth that?"  
I grinned and laughed when thinking back of the girl, who'd probably pissed herself, "Ye can go fuck yourself if ya wanna know."  
"Fine then, but let's be quick…"

He started walking back to the camp. Many Uruks were going on about their business, sometimes trash-talking each other or brawling, or sometimes just drinking. I didn't care so much about what my crooks did. They're only damn worms, so if one ends up dying because of the fact they always act like damn idiots, who am I to care? I'm stronger, better than all of them. I'm their damn captain! I'm Astaroth!

As for the looks of the camp, well, it was quite large. I'd even dare say it was large than Roseband! However, I can't be completely sure. As for the tents, they often bore red colors and were quite large in appearance. They could hold several Uruks in, and the largest could serve as little bases.

But… I still followed Ofdaukh. While I still had a damn brain —Unlike many fuckin' Tarks and many fuckin' Uruk-Hais—, alone, I couldn't really lead the camp by myself. Ofdaukh eventually led me to a large tent. One large enough to hold all of us.

If some important fight ever breaks out in the camp, it's gonna be here, I thought while internally grinning with malice. I walked in first, Ofdaukh following. Inside, there were already Brelgegh, a fat orc who was only interested in pillaging, Gacral, an opportunistic idiot, and Grurdodh, my second in command. Almost as tall as I am, almost as smart as I am, but not as strong as I am.

The first to speak up was Brelgegh, "Finally here, are ya?"  
That motherfuckin' fat retard was always the first to look at us like we were inferior. That's always pissin' me off, but today, I was in a lighter mood. Dunno why the girl made me in such a good mood. Bullying Tarks must be great for my explosive temper. "Yea, I'm here now, ya damn bastard."  
Grudodh crossed his arms and simply stared at us. He's always better at watching us debate, I tell ya'!  
"Well, we were talking about just how to enter the village!" Gacral said with high airs. He's a damn idiot though. You don't need brains to see that you can just go through the fuckin' gate or just bust down the wood spikes.  
At least Ofdaukh was catching on, "Well, ya little shit, we just have to go through the damn gate. It ain't hard to break of climb over."  
The attack was planned for the night, which was why we were talking about the gate.  
"What about the guards?" Gacral said, still trying to sound smart to try to give solutions to easy issues.  
"Guards? Those stupid Tark guards ain't standin' a chance against our orcs, not even at night!" I said.  
"Well, alright then," Gacral answered. Grudodh then got up.

Standing at his tallest, Grudodh was scary —At least to a Tark, eh!—, to say the least. He had very dark brown skin, and long, greasy dark hair descending deep into his back. He also had a bit of a beard on his chin and had orange eyes. He had a scar on his chest, one that gave him an intimidating look, one that most orcs wouldn't have survived getting. This ferocious appearance also heavily applied to his personality and behavior. I've seen him kill other Uruks on a simple mood swing, and though that on itself isn't uncommon in Uruks, he did it so often my crooks knew to fear him.

I'd also seen him single-handedly slay a whole band of orcs because he was throwing a fit. Not something I hadn't done, to be honest, but it was something the orcs around me had always remembered. We knew each other for a long time though, and we knew to tolerate each other at least a little. He wasn't second in command for no reason, I tell ya.

"What are we going to get from raiding a small village like Roseband?"

"We're doing it mainly for pleasure, right?" I said. I knew he meant "What are we really going to gain other than a few dead Uruks if we raid the village?"

"Yea. That we are." Ofdaukh then said, tapping his foot on the ground.

Brelgegh then spoke, "Well, if we cut the spouse's fingers, can't we get nice lil' rings?"

"Brelgegh, if you haven't noticed, nobody fuckin' cares about pretty things," I told him. He was seriously annoying me by now. What the fuck is up with his obsession with "pretty, shiny things"?! He's dressed in fuckin' golden robes somedays, for fuck's sake!

Grudodh was moving his head to each of us as we spoke. For once, Garcral said something semi-smart, "We'll take their weapons, and take some of these Tarks to use as either slaves, or to use for… whatever we may want to do to them." He grinned, exposing his sharp teeth as if he was proud of himself for getting that idea.

Meanwhile, that just made me think of that girl… Edarna, was it? Hehe. I'm legitimately looking forward to taking her in, and to make her piss herself fuckin' thousands of times. Maybe hurt her. Maybe…

Damn, I was starting to think a lot about that first Tark. But it might be like that for every damn orc, so, I didn't really care so much. After all, I did hear orcs saying the thrill of the kill was amazing. Only one problem with that. I hadn't killed her, and I was still feeling... excited? Maybe even longing for her presence? Bah, whatever! It's nothing!

"We can all take a PERSONAL slave, then!" Ofdakh said. Edarna for me alone, then, I thought to myself after hearing this. She couldn't just be taken in by any fuckin' idiot; she seemed to be top quality. And she was something other orcs would never understand.

"I second that!" I said, wanting to get my hands on Edarna as soon as possible now.

Garcal seemed to be pleased by the approval of his peers, "Well, we should do just that!"

"I spoke anyways, and my word remains law! Let's do that," I said, getting up and letting out a harsh scream while keeping others from speaking their mind. I had decided. The other orcs get up at the same time, screaming in approval. Well, all except for Grurdodh. He stayed seated, terribly serious as he always was.

As we were celebrating —Or rather, just starting to—, an Uruk came rushing into the tent. He panted, with a panicked look on his face.  
"We got a few problems! Some human guards have found us for whatever reason!"

"How is that our damn problem?!" Ofdakh snarled out. I sighed but was internally quite content. I was longing for more killing, longing for killing Tarks for the first time.  
"It's MY problem. I'm going to go take care of that."  
Finally some good actual fucking fun. Let's see how Tarks fare against those two axes!

I ran out of the tent, already starting to make my way to the entrance of the camp. The camp wasn't large, so it was not that hard to do. I had to push many Uruks out of my way, including one who didn't seem happy; that is until he realized who I was. When he did, he quickly moved out of my way, nearly running, and mumbling "Sorry, cap'!"

Once arrived at the mean entrance, two Uruks were standing, blocking the other Uruks from going out of the camp. As I approached, one of them seemed to grow nervous, and eyed the other. When I was at arms reach, they moved to the side and allowed me to pass.

Just outside, I could see a dead orc's body. Always knew he was a weakling. He had a deep stab wound in the back, which probably went right through either his lungs or his heart. The lad was dead, there was no doubt about that.

I took a breath and tried to find the place of fighting. I started moving forwards, eventually finding three guards. They were the only ones left of their patrol. They didn't see me initially, which meant that I could strike first, which I did, charging onto one and smashing my axe against his skull. Since he had no helmet, the axe crunched through his skull, and I needed a bit of strength to pull it out. He fell heavily, without any life in his body at that point. In the meantime, another one had gotten his sword ready to strike onto my shoulder. I dodged barely in time before the other tried to impale me with his spear. I caught the spear between my two axes, raised the spear and pulled the guy closer to me before headbutting him straight onto the nose, shattering it easily.

Weak little shits, I thought as the one with the sword tried to stab me, and failed due to my movement. I tried swinging my axe to get it straight into his chest, but he parried with his sword and moved forward, pushing me away with his body and trying to make me fall. I didn't but using a bit of momentum, the man swung his blade onto my side and left a cut.

I didn't like getting hurt like that. Not one bit. I snapped back at him, before hitting him with my axe right in the shoulder. It broke his shoulder pad and got stuck into his shoulder. Left it that way, 'cause it was funnier to see. His body fell, but he wasn't quite dead. As for the man with the spear, I turned around and snarled at him aggressively. He stumbled backward in a terrified manner, but then held his spear a little tighter in his hands, trying to maneuver another attack onto me, this time trying to hit me in the head. I could dodge easily though, and the moment I did so, I slammed my axes into his skull, most particularly his eyes area. It went straight through, making the man die immediately and splattering blood everywhere. I laughed a bit and turned back to the man with the sword. I didn't give this little fucko' a break, grabbing him by the head.  
"How the hell did you find my guys?"

He seemed to shudder and his voice was greatly shaking, "W-Well, wasn't it quite obvious?"  
I shook him vigorously, even kicking him in the gut. He's takin' me for a fuckin' idiot, and I don't like that. "You don't usually go so far out of your village!"  
The guy stayed silent. I shook him again, "Spit it out, lil' fag!"  
He grunted with pain, "The missing girl…"

What? Missing girl. Ooooh, wait, is he talking about that Tark bitch again?  
"Edarna?"  
"Y-Yes… Edarna… Her father was deathly worried after the news of orcs spotted in the night. She couldn't have known there really was danger out there… The village was only told at a reasonable hour…"  
I let out a chuckle. A sort of evil, vicious, sarcastic chuckle. "Well, that's her fault, ain't it?"  
"N-N-" I kicked him the gut again, this time hard enough to cut his breath. I then removed the axe from his shoulder, letting his body fall onto the hard ground with a thud. He was breathing scarcely, but without any help, he'd be dead before long.

I turned 'round, walking back to the camp. The cut on my side hurt, and bled, but didn't bother me. What, have you ever seen an Uruk cry because they fuckin' bruised their side? Ha! Never! Never in fuckin' forever!

The two Uruks greeted me as politely as it gets, and I then entered back the camp with only the attack on the village and Edarna in mind.

'We're going to greatly enjoy this night.'


	3. The orcs attack

Hey. So, before we start this, I'd like to say… God holy fucking shit, already 200 hits (At the time of writing). Golly, I was not expecting that at all! Thank you so much!

Now, I also have something to say. While I did release chapters quite quickly before, now, you should expect a week, or two, or three, or I don't know for this fanfic. The explanation? The rhythm of life and, of course, the writing of an original story I might publish on AO3. If you're interested, you should get to check it out. Sorry for the delay, too. I had my ass being lazy as fuck with this one...

End of this, now! Enjoy chapter three!

—-

I was entirely and solely focused on running away as fast as possible. I was afraid. Terribly afraid. The fear and adrenaline were shooting and coursing through my body, motivating my legs to move forward, to run for my dear life despite the pain around my throat, my back, and my hands.

Luckily enough, I was out of the forest after a few minutes. I checked behind me to see if the beast had followed me, but he had not, which was a relief. I sat down and panted, catching my breath.

'How did this happen?!'

My mind was racing through the different thoughts circulating through my brain. First off: Are the orcs really going to storm my village? Why? When are they going to do it? Tonight? Tomorrow? In a week?

It seems likely the attack is imminent. The orc was wandering out without a care in the world, and it looked like he wasn't afraid of finding any Tark. However, I've seen him demonstrate his oversized ego. I think in any case, he wouldn't have been afraid. I doubt, too, that they would wait long to attack. It must be either tonight or tomorrow. That was how orcs were, as I've been told by my father. Impulsive, brutal, malicious. Evil at its finest.

But my thoughts didn't stop focusing on the orc. Long after I was even done reasoning about their attack. The image of him in my mind remained. Sweaty, filthy, smelling of a bad odor such as I had hardly seen before. One that was a mix of… sweat? Of… just filth?

Now that I was thinking about it, I must admit it wasn't nearly THAT bad. It just smelt like I or like my father did after a long day of work —or just a long day spent in the forest—. He was also tall and very strong. Very mighty, even. I remember faintly seeing a scar on his temple. I wonder how he got this. Another human, perhaps? Or maybe that had been delivered by another orc?

And how was he able to put so much dread into me?

Well, I was only a human woman, after all. A farm girl, one who wasn't gifted in much, and to top it all off, a weak woman. He towered over me, with his two terrifying axes and with his robust-looking armor.

Did he give off such a vibe to other orcs? Were those evil beings also as startled by this huge orc captain? I wonder…

And how does he fare in b-

No. I should stop wondering about such things, I should stop obsessing over an ugly orc. I should, instead, travel back to the village to give them the news. Perhaps they're worrying over me. Perhaps my father is worried about me!

I raced back towards my village, following the road and running as quickly as I could. Once I was there, I started gasping for air. After I caught my breath a little, I looked towards the gate.

The gate was closed.

'Oh no. Why would they close the gate? We're only just in the middle of the day…!'

I gulped as I took a step closer to the gate. I nervously knocked. It hurt to do so, but I believe I was heard, as, from the other side of the gate, I could hear a guard speak a few words.

"Who is coming?" He seemed severe, on guard, stressed beyond normality. Edarna raised an eyebrow at that but then spoke her name loudly and clearly. "Edarna."

"Edarna?! Oh god, your father was so worried! Quickly, come!"  
Just as I thought. I just hope my father won't punish me or interrogate me too much about what happened. The door slowly opened, the guard standing to the side and nodding as he saw me enter.

I kept walking, eventually back to home. I slowly put my hand onto the doorknob and started to turn it around. I then pushed, slowly opening the door.

"Dad?"

I heard a gasp. A gasp of relief, but also of surprise. "Edarna!"

I could hear him getting up and quickly moving before he opened the door and hugged me tightly in his arms. He buried his face in my shoulder, "I thought I'd lost you!"  
"You did?" I inquired.  
"Yes, I did!"  
"But why?"  
I was clearly wondering why he had been so worried. Usually, when I came back home, my dad just shrugged and asked me how walking in the forest had been. Once, though, he HAD been scared and then told me about how I shouldn't stay in the forest for so long. I'm an adult now, and even though I was late, I didn't expect him to react like this once my mind had been clear of any anxiety.  
The gate had been closed though… Wait, I think I know…  
My dad sighed, closed his eyes, and then opened them again as if he had been trying to gather a form of concentration.  
"Well, Edarna… We've spotted a whole camp of orcs not far away from the village."  
That's when his gaze got to my throat. Choking marks could be spotted. "Edarna, did one of them do anything to you?"  
I froze. My thoughts seemed to race again for a moment, and I concluded that under this situation, I could not lie.  
"I met an orc captain…"  
It was now his turn to freeze. After a long silence, he seemed to ask, his voice all nervous and all little, "R-Really?"  
I nodded slowly, looking to the side. "I'm sorry, dad, I couldn't-"  
He cut me off, "Shhhh… It's not your fault… You couldn't have known…"  
I should have listened to his warnings from the beginning though! What if I had? But then… Oh! That reminds me!  
"Dad… He told me they were going to attack us…"  
He shook his head. "That's why the gate is closed, dear. We'll barricade ourselves in the house, and hope we can stay well and alive. I'll grab my old sword. Meanwhile, you should grab a knife. We never really know, after all…"  
I gulped and nodded. The perspective of killing and using a knife wasn't really joyful, but I had no choice.  
"Alright, dad. Just, please promise me we'll be fine…"

He smiled weakly. "I promise we'll be fine."

—

It was night now. I was effectively quite anxious. I was expecting it at any time now, as I was sitting in the attic. The orcs busting into our house and killing my father and me in the most horrible fashion possible. What, orcs were quite reputed for that, weren't they? They'd likely rape or torture me, and, and…

No use stressing over it. I got up and checked around the house. The windows were blocked with whatever my father could have found, and the door was barricaded with absolutely everything they could use. She felt quite safe with that but also trapped in, like there was no way out. If the orcs never got in, then, what would they do? Go out of the village and live in the wilds? What if the orcs had decided to burn her house down? Surely wouldn't be any better.

I was thinking about it all when sounds and cries broke outside. I froze; Men and women, and beasts. Terrifying orcs, of course. She was imagining them looming over her, laughing and snarling, before raising their blade to stab right through my heart; no, maybe that'd be too merciful for them. Maybe instead, they'd slowly start to pull my robe off of me and then get access to my purity… The simple thought disgusted me. Maybe they'd love to use their knives up against my skin, maybe carve out some bad words on it. And what if they had whips and other horrible torture devices? That was horrifying to think about.

I heard some hits against the ceiling. Immediately, I thought, 'Shit.' I didn't have much else to think, after all. I felt the panic starting to rush through me, as suddenly, a familiar blue figure jumped down.

"Hey, Tark."

I fell silent and looked at him, a bit in awe. "Why haven't you come with other-"  
"Shut up, ya don't just ask and give me ideas like that."  
"Huh…"  
"The other orcs are already trying to get inside ya house from the front door. They're sort of getting in any moment now, either be it by any window or my making a new hole in your house."  
I knew he was somewhat right, so I just looked down. I only had one simple question to ask. "What are you going to do with me?" I looked up at him again, with fear, "Will you kill me?"  
"Nah."  
"Are you going to torture me?"  
"Not spoiling anything yet, lil' girl."  
Again, I was silent. I was expecting him to grab me and hurt me any moment now, but he didn't. He just sat down next to me, wrapping his arm behind me and bringing me closer. I cringed at the contact, trying to move away, but he was stronger than I was, keeping me as close as possible. "Uhm…"  
He put his hand over my mouth, "Shhh, they're in now," And he was right. I heard the cries come from below, my father shouting until he was silenced. I heard him scream of pain one last time, and heard the sound of steel dropping to the ground. The orcs were now starting to scream and run all over the place. I was petrified, to say the least, tears starting to form into the corner of my eyes. He wiped those tears with his hands, "Girl, that was bound to happen, but don't worry, I'm keeping ya alive,"  
"B-But why?" I sniffled.  
"You'd rather be dead?"  
"N-No-"  
He silenced me, "Then it's better to just come with me."  
"You're gonna make me a slave?"  
"Maybe, maybe not. Maybe I'll release ya." Of course, he wouldn't do that. Of course, he'd just keep me as a slave. Nevertheless, he kept me close. "But don't ya worry about anything, 'cause I'm gonna keep you well with me…"  
"Please, let me go-" I started squirming. "Shut up!" He answered. I tried to wiggle out of his grip again, but he grabbed my head and hit it against the ground.

I lost consciousness.


End file.
